Chapter 67)
"Well, I've got a suggestion," Lena said. "Is there any Dead Earths where we could lead the Anti-Monitor to and perhaps trap him?"
The Beyonder responded by shaking her head.
"He keeps a meticulous list of all of the Earths which had been destroyed," the Beyonder said. "Attempting to trap him on a dead earth has been tried before and failed. Lives have been lost."
Oh, why did Lena now think they might not be the first group the Beyonder put through these Battle World trials? But, not enough time to think about it. Lena considered any number of Lex's schemes to contain and destroy Superman. Would any of them be feasible, perhaps ramped up a hundred times, in stopping the likes of the Anti-Monitor? Granted, Lena had a feeling not.
"The best way to do so is to head him off," Shuri said. "And adapt the plan we had for combating the Beyonder to the Anti-Monitor."
"Your plan would not have stopped me, but perhaps you may have better luck with the Anti-Monitor," the Beyonder said.
"Right," Daisy said. "Grace's dagger could be the key to all of this, although we need to increase the potency. It might be the only thing. Well Vibranium added in with the dark matter of the dagger, it could create a potent enough Doomsday weapon to wipe out the Anti-Monitor."
"And I was working on something at my lab," Alexandra said. "Something which could stop the Beyonder, at least in theory. If we amplify it enough, it should work."
"My magic could give you the boost you need," Nora said.
"Mine as well, and the two of us together, we could pack a punch," Wanda commented. "But, do we have any chance?"
"Maybe not, but since we has the dangerous and the impossible stopped any of us before?" Zari asked. "I know it hasn't stopped the Legends."
Amaya and Sara both smiled and Gideon nodded. Yes, that was true, dealing with some dangerous, universe-alterning and time-altering situations.
"I've been unable to track the Anti-Monitor," Gideon said. "Although perhaps with an established pattern of behavior, we can have a good look at where the Anti-Monitor will head next."
"Maybe," Sara agreed.
"Earth-38," Anti-Monitor said. "The home of Kara Danvers, Alexandra Danvers, Gwendolyn Stacy, and Lena Luthor."
"No, he won't," Alex said. "Because, he won't make it there."
They had one shot to reach the Anti-Monitor before he reached their home. Kara, Alex, Gwen, and Lena had a lot on the line.
"I wish you the best, for you if fail, none will survive the experience," The Beyonder said. "And even with success, comes a great price."
"Reassuring," Gwen said.
"The multiverse has become too congested. Too bloated. Therefore, there are worlds which are redundant which must fall and perish before I rebuild. One world, submerged underneath my thumb. Only the most relevant."
The Anti-Monitor stood on the moon which orbited another Earth. Some moons he visited had life, but they were not the target of the Anti-Monitor. He would annihilate anyone who would get to his way.
Some Earths would be wiped out in an instant. Others would be decimated with a little more effort. Regardless of the situation, the Anti-Monitor smiled.
"The Beyonder, I can see you stalking ever closer," Anti-Monitor said. "If you can hear me, then listen to me well, Beyonder. I've wiped out team after team of your champions. If you think sending me splitting your efforts and trying to confuse me is going to do any better, I welcome the attack. And I welcome the chance to take your power and be able to assimilate more worlds. Because, our time of reckoning is at hand."
The Anti-Monitor hovered over Earth Thirty-Nine. He moved through this branch of worlds on the tree of the multiverse to pluck all of the leaves, and started hovering down towards the latest Earth to consume it in the shadows.
It would not be missed for it would be wiped out. One less Earth to clog up the Multiverse.
Suddenly, a portal opened up right above the Anti-Monitor.
"They are fools if they think they have any conceivable way of stopping me."
Power Girl dropped down right into the midst of the chaos. The terrified citizens of this Earth rose up to fight them, however they had no choice due to being a world which had not evolved past spears. The shadows surrounded Power Girl and Power Girl saw the images of Krypton crumbling around her as she made her way into the escape pod.
"Heads up!"
Killer Frost joined Power Girl and impaled two of the shadow figures with icicles. Power Girl shook her head and blasted the enemy with a huge blast of heat vision which caused him to go around.
Jesse Quick zoomed in and got all of the citizens out of the way. They seemed to be more terrified than their rescuers than they were of the attackers.
"Okay, these people don't have running water, so we might be a bit too much for them," Power Girl said.
Daisy jumped down and rocked the ground to stagger their enemies. The Anti-Monitor could be very close by, and hopefully the other groups were having better luck. Shuri and Zari dropped down to join the battle.
"Remember, if this world crumbles, Gideon will get you out there," Sara said. "We can't afford to lose anyone."
"We won't," Zari said. "We can't afford to lose any more Earths."
Zari created a burst of wind. The shadows kept coming and they kept feeding off of the fear of the people around them. Which Zari could not help, and think they were increasing through their presence on this world.
"Closing in on the Anti-Monitor," Supergirl said.
"Keep on him," Zari said. "We'll keep his forces trimmed."
Jesse once again saved some village children. They looked at her with some awe and fear. The huge shadow creature rose up and Jesse's mind flashed back to her imprisonment at the hands of Zoom to get her father to comply. The ground iced up around her.
"Jesse, heads up!"
Killer Frost nailed the shadow monsters with a blast of ice and sent him staggering backwards onto the ground.
"Aren't you scared?" Jesse asked.
"The worst thing isn't what happened in the past," Caitlin said. "The worst thing is what's ahead of us in the future, if we don't stop the Anti-Monitor."
The team made some progress in stopping the Anti-Monitor's forces on the ground. The technologically behind Earth citizens looked on with awe and confusion. They all muttered in surprise and wondered if they were witches or something else entirely.
As long as they did not add any complications, they would be in good standings. The shadows consumed even more on the margins though.
"No, it's beginning!" Power Girl yelled.
Shuri threw a vibranium disc which created an energy field. Unfortunately, the field would not hold for long as the shadows broke free and hissed very loudly.
Alex, Grace, Nora Darhk, Flamebird, Supergirl, Overgirl, and the Scarlet Witch dropped right into the belly of the beast, or right in front of the Anti-Monitor himself.
"The Beyonder still sends ants to fight a god," the Anti-Monitor said.
Wanda and Nora exchanged a gaze and they launched a double attack to create a golden cage around the Anti-Monitor. He crumbled through the attack like it was nothing. Flamebird, Supergirl, and Overgirl dove bomb the Anti-Monitor and smacked him around with a force of light.
The Anti-Monitor swapped them all down like they were flies.
Grace jumped onto the shoulder of the distracted Anti-Monitor, and attempted to slam the dagger into his shoulder. The Anti-Monitor spun around and slapped Grace off of him. The dagger stabbed into his chest and instead of destroying the Anti-Monitor, it crumbled to dust.
"No."
"That was your ultimate weapon."
Grace lost control and went all Carnage. Up until the point where the Anti-Monitor grabbed onto the suit and prepared to bombard it with anti-matter. The suit burned off of Grace.
Alex grabbed Grace around the waist and pulled her away before the wave could burn her to pieces. Unfortunately, Alex's suit had been bombarded by the similar antimatter wave.
"ALEX!" Kara screamed.
Flamebird burned the suit off of Alex before it spread to her. Alex rolled onto the ground, breathing heavily, although not as heavily as Grace. Alex watched in horror as her suit, screaming out in agony, disappeared into dust and had been wiped out by the anti-monitor.
"NO!" Alex yelled. "YOU MONSTER!"
Alex's suit had been completely destroyed by the Anti-Monitor. She felt naked and vunerable on the field, and unable to have any way to fight the Anti-Monitor.
"Alex, Alex, we got to fight," Kara murmured.
"She's realizing it, as you will now, Kara Zor-El. Just like your friend did when she watched all of her friends disappear into nothingness."
"Nothing is impossible," Kara said. "Not when you have friends."
"Sentimental, but foolish," the Anti-Monitor said.
Kara zoomed at the Anti-Monitor with all of the force she could. Kara managed to get off several intense shots on the Anti-Monitor and knock him back a set before the Anti-Monitor sent Supergirl back from the attack.
Flamebird shield Supergirl from the Anti-Matter wave just before it hit her. The Anti-Monitor laughed. Alex sat next to them both. Xara, Nora, and Wanda ll looked, unsure of what to do.
"You will see your loved ones in oblivion soon enough," Anti-Monitor said. "I will give you a head start."
The Anti-Matter wave approached them. Flamebird did her best to hold it back, although she would not be able to hold it back for long.
"Gideon, get us out of here," Xara said.
"Wait, we can't run from…."
Supergirl's words had been cut off when the protectors to disappear. They watched, in the time void, on the Waverider as Earth Thirty-Nine disappeared and the Anti-Monitor would be on Earth Thirty-Eight.
"Alex, I'm sorry," Kara said.
"No, I'm sorry," Alex said. "I can't do this. I can't do this."
"It's not the suit that was a hero," Kara said. "It was the woman inside of it."
"Wiped out," Alex said. "Wiped out."
Kara ran a hand over Alex's head and lightly kissed her on the top of the head. She walked over and turned her attention to the Beyonder.
"I'm ending this myself," Kara said. "Send me home."
'Kara, wait!"
"As you wish," The Beyonder said solemnly.
Kara vanished in a blink of an eye. Alex's eyes turned onto the Beyonder. She took a deep breath and three steps before she collapsed down onto the ground.
"You sent my sister off to die," Alex gasped.
The Beyonder responded with not a single word. Kara made her choice.
The Anti-Monitor appeared in the midst of National City, outside of the CatCo headquarters. Fitting his destruction would begin there. The place where the so called protectors, who were merely just cowards given how they fled and rather took their defeat like champions were.
"ANTI-MONITOR!"
Up in the sky, it was not a bird, it was not a plane. It was Supergirl, and she was pissed. She beamed down with all of the force of a comet on the Anti-Monitor and blasted him with the most intense pulse of heat vision she could manage. The Anti-Monitor's staggered back and Supergirl landed more shots on the Anti-Monitor's. Her knuckles, while bruised and bleeding, showed just how dangerous she was.
Supergirl flipped over the head of the Anti-Monitor and grabbed him by the back of the head. She reared back and snapped the Anti-Monitor's neck.
For a brief second, Supergirl thought she won. The glory had been brief, and the Anti-Monitor rose up to the ground, and chuckled.
"You could have gotten a quick death," Anti-Monitor said. "I don't normally get blood on my….."
Supergirl hurled a large bus at the Anti-Monitor mid monologue. The Anti-Monitor destroyed the bus and slammed Supergirl with all of the most blunt force possible. Supergirl slammed through several windows and landed right in the middle of an office room.
The Girl of Steel brushed the glass off of her back and charged out. The Anti-Monitor grabbed her cape in mid air and swung Supergirl around. Supergirl landed down onto the ground with an impact and she spat blood out when she hit.
"You don't understand. I can't be fought. I cannot be contained. I am the one entity you cannot think of destroying."
The Anti-Monitor curb-stomped Supergirl into the pavement and yanked her back up. He whipped around Supergirl by the cape and slammed her down onto the ground.
"Any last words," the Anti-Monitor said.
"Burn!"
Supergirl summoned all of the solar energy into herself and bombarded the Anti-Monitor with an attack. It burned his armor off for a second until it healed.
The Anti-Monitor smacked Supergirl back down and beat her senseless into the ground. Despite her body aching and every bone cracking underneath the pressure, Supergirl struggled to her feet.
"Stay away from my sister!"
Alex appeared in the edge. She looked pale, and shaky, but at the same time very determined. She held a large energy cannon in her hand.
"You're not a threat without the suit," the Anti-Monitor said. "I can make you decay with a blink of an eye."
Alex said nothing, she just blasted the Anti-Monitor with the vibranium powered cannon. The weapon of Earth-X counterpart created, powered by both vibranium and dark matter. Along with Lena's own personal touch, well borrowed a bit from one of Lex's failed schemes to take down Superman.
Nora Darhk appeared behind them both. The Anti-Monitor pushed back the beam. This was her chance. Nora sliced the palm of her hand open and muttered something underneath her breath. The wave of energy cascaded around the Anti-Monitor, and with one more furious blast, the Anti-Monitor pushed into the the portal.
The Anti-Monitor's screams of anguish had came. Nora banished him to a hellish realm and hopefully stopped him for good.
Alex breathed out a sigh and stepped forward. She crumpled down into the crater which had been left and shakily embraced her sister.
"You okay?" Alex asked.
"I'll heal," Kara managed. "You?"
"I'll be fine," Alex said. "We better…."
"We've got a problem."
Alex and Kara helped each other out of the crater and noticed Nora trying to tread the portal back together. Except the threads kept snapping.
"I stopped him, but if can't close it, something far worse is going to slip through."
The skies around them turned red, always foreboding.
The Plot Continues In the Next Chapter.